


cherry wine

by Heavydirtys0ul, things-we-used-tc-share (Heavydirtys0ul)



Series: Wasteland, Baby! [9]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Also Remy has an even worse temper than Virgil, M/M, Patton's father deserves a bullet ngl, abuse tw, some sweet platonic Remy and Patton interactions tho, violence tw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-08-19 22:36:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20217415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heavydirtys0ul/pseuds/Heavydirtys0ul, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heavydirtys0ul/pseuds/things-we-used-tc-share
Summary: Patton never really like his home, anyway.





	1. Chapter 1

_"Open hand or closed fist would be fine,_

_Blood is rare and sweet as cherry wine,"_

_-Cherry Wine, Hozier_

* * *

Patton isn't quite sure what he was expecting if he's honest. He had an idea, and maybe Virgil and Roman have picked up on his reluctance to return home today, but he had already told them his home doesn't quite feel like much of a home. His feet trail against the gravel road like a criminal walking to his execution, there again sometimes he feels like he's rather be hung than live in the house that he does. People have always treated him strangely as though there is something about him that just makes people want to stay away; what that may be he hasn't a clue, he'd always tried to be kind and optimistic even when there had been days he hadn't wanted to be either. His father had never been much different in that regards, and although Patton's mother tried to love him unconditionally, he could sometimes see the way she looks at him to be an absent expression of empty love.

Remy was supposed to be meeting him at the gate in half an hour so he was really quite hoping he could just walk in and say hello, and walk out again. He'd barely got through the front door. 

His father was something of a hypocrite, he goes to Church every Sunday and says his prayers and comes home for an hour with alcohol on his tongue, the smell clings to his clothes and this entire house like the smell of death in a mortuary. On a good day, Patton could've avoided him, but luck isn't playing friendly matches today as he stares up at the furious expression of his father. It takes only moments before the young man is on the floor, bruises blossoming on the pale skin as he bites his tongue and curls up as still as he can. He'll get bored eventually, he always does. Words are spilling from the elder man and Patton wishes for a heart attack on the other so he may stop being a terror. It's really rather rare he wishes death on anyone, but he had to learn what alcoholism was before he hit five years old and what bruises feel like when someone punches you before he'd even learned to talk. 

But he knows it's not fair to ask and it's not fair to play games with someone's life, so he hasn't told Roman or Virgil. After the events of last week, he's almost certain he will never tell either of them about his father's penchant for making punching bags out of his family. "Your mother left," Finally the punches stop, a glass bottle hits Patton's skin and he can't tell if it was by accident "And it's your fault," _Yeah, sure, I'm sure **this** has nothing to do with it_, Patton thinks bitterly. "She was sick with worry after you left, you didn't leave any sort of note, she got angry at me because you were too stupid to care about your parents," _How many shards of glass is he going to be picking out of his skin today?_

Is Remy going to notice? Will he tell Virgil? 

Patton knows he should be crying, he should be in agony, but he isn't. He's barely feeling it which is odd, to say the least, he really should ask Roman if he's done something without telling him. But even a charm...Roman **_always_** asks permission. Perhaps Virgil? So many questions pull him out of the present until he barely notices that his father has left, leaving the boy to tut quietly at the time. He's going to be late; so he stands up on legs that are barely aching and notes with relief that the glass shards aren't too small, a pair of tweezers and a few plasters should do the job. His priorities tend to lie within other people. 

_Why isn't he feeling the pain? He's usually in agony_. 

He makes his way upstairs with the knowledge that nothing feels quite like Emile's warm house and candlelight. He picks the glass from under his skin and rinses away the blood, it's almost impossible but the skin looks as though it's already starting to heal over. He decides he's simply tired and imagining things as he grabs a box of plasters. There's a really dark bruise over his left eye but nothing his clumsiness can't explain as he grabs his sweater and pulls it on over his too-thin body. It's not the first time he's had to hide bruises, but it's the first time he's had to hide them from people with more than half a brain (and Roman), especially two people who can quite literally sense emotions. 

But it will have to do, otherwise, Patton really is going to be late and he _hates_ being late more than anything. He gets the feeling he won't be returning here for a while and has no real intention too, so he packs a bag of the few things he actually owns; a cassette player and cassettes, some batteries, and some clothes. There's a chocolate bar he'd been saving for a good occasion, and a packet of cigarettes he'd never smoked and never wanted to smoke but kept them anyway, so he tucks them both into his pockets. A small stuffed alpaca that he usually kept with him for comfort gets added to his bag, he knows none of them will tease him for it the way everyone else had. 

"Boys aren't supposed to like things like that. Boys are supposed to drink beer and punch each other and hate the world," in essence is what his father had taught him between bruises and glass bottles, but Patton was not having any of that, he never had and never would; he spent too much of his life learning how to be soft to turn heel now. He takes the little potted cactus off of the windowsill and cradles it in his hands, Roman will probably take good care of it, better care than he's been able too. 

With his small bag of things, he closes the door behind him and runs out, dodging the idea of seeing his father as though his home had become an obstacle course that people tend to not be very good at escaping. By the time he gets to the gate he's late by one minute, most people wouldn't fret but it gives Patton a rush of anxiety that he can't shake, but Remy grins at him as if he hadn't noticed the difference (He probably hasn't, Roman would have, Roman can tell when someone is late down to the last second). "How _is_ my favorite Human doing?" He pauses "You're carrying a lot of things, running away from home?" The joking tone hides something similar to worry underneath it, so Patton just nods with an exhausted expression. "You have a bruise on your cheek," He's not very good at lying, Patton knows this, and for some reason the idea of lying to Remy has him choking on his own tongue so he simply nods again. "Who did that to you?"

Patton had been good at dodging this question for so many years but he seemed to be changing a lot these last few weeks. He tries to lie, really he does, but it's as though his tongue had swollen up in his mouth the moment he tries to force the words past his lips. "My father," He finally breathes out a secret that he'd kept to himself for so long, looking down at the cactus in his hands. He'd expected perhaps Remy would be somehow calmer than Virgil had been, that he'd keep his temper better than Roman, instead, Patton has to step back as Remy's eyes flicker from brown to gold with a fury like no other buried in those colors. "Remy it's okay, I'm here with you, I'm safe, I barely even feel it anymore,"

"Why do people keep hurting you?" Patton forgets that in Witch culture it would be almost abhorrent for one of them to hurt another intentionally, it would be seen as utterly disgraceful. Humans are much quicker to throw a punch than settle things amicably, and the confusion and fear and sheer hatred in Remy's eyes right now really settles that thought. "Virgil says I shouldn't hate Humans, but this is the second time I've seen you with bruises now, and honestly if this is what they do to their own kind what would they do to me?" He steps back and shakes his head "This was a bad idea we should just go home," 

Patton shakes his head "I'm under strict instructions to make sure you at least give it a try," He cradles his plant in one hand and squeezes Remy's with the other. "And please don't tell Virgil, or Roman, the last thing I need is more trouble," Remy's expression softens as he looks down at his hands.

"Look I'm not Fae, Patton, and usually I have no issues lying for people, but I can't lie to my brother and if he finds out that I knew and didn't tell him it would be as bad as me swinging for him, he cares about you a great deal, actually I've not heard him talk about someone so much since he and Roman first started dating, please don't make me withhold information from him, Pat,, it's one of the few things I wouldn't do for my friends," It hadn't even really occurred to Patton that he and Remy were friends, but he nods because he knows that family for them is so much greater than family for him. Family is more than just a word to Witches, it's an oath. 

"Okay," He sighs and nods "Just try and stop him from doing something stupid, yeah, once he gets angry it's kinda hard for me to keep a reign on him so I suppose you'll have more luck," Remy snorts as they start to walk, shaking his head. No, he doesn't have much luck with Virgil's temper either, you simply can't control a storm, and Virgil is nothing if not two steps short of a natural disaster. 


	2. Chapter 2

_"Her fight and fury is fiery _

_Oh but she loves _

_Like sleep to the freezing _

_Sweet and right and merciful _

_I'm all but washed In the tide of her breathing,"_

_ -Cherry Wine, Hozier_

* * *

Remy is good at many things, but as it so appears, counseling is not one of them. Patton had been placing bets in his head how long it would take him to bail, and as it turns out Remy completely exceeded his expectations and lasted five whole minutes before shaking his head and muttering "I can't do this," To give him credit where credit is due, he did try. For someone who is usually impeccable when it comes to talking about himself, he could not for the life of him articulate his own problems and almost had a complete meltdown, Patton had to get him out of there before he accidentally did something he'd regret. 

The Witch isn't upset with the priest, a jovial man who is a little too kind and no matter how hard Remy tried to read him, could only find ridiculously good intention, which he despised. He isn't upset with Patton who is all but dragging him back to the forest before his emotions get the better of him. He isn't even upset with Virgil and Emile for conspiring against him and sending him amongst Humans who seem to be getting more bloodthirsty by the day. Remy, however, is furious with himself for being unable to do something as simple as talk. 

So furious that he can't quite control the way fire seems to erupt around him as he crumbles, Patton had hoped to forget that Remy's anger and melancholia is so fiery, as he scrambles back from the conflicted Witch and right into Virgil's arms. "Go," The elder brother pushes Patton away and Roman takes his hand, an unreadable expression on his face. For a moment, the man feels a little like a child being lead away from a car crash by his parents so he can't see the devastation. They'd been trying to make Remy better and it appears they had only managed to make him worse. Patton looks back over his shoulder to see Virgil trying to calm the fire before it gets too out of control, then decides he doesn't quite want to watch at all. 

By the time he gets back to the village, Roman seems to only just notice the cactus still tucked against his arm. "Are you okay?" He asks worriedly, his hands pressing anywhere and everywhere they can "You have a bruise," It's a simple enough statement, but Patton can only shake his head, the fire still flickering when he closes his eyes. "And a cactus," Patton nods. 

"It...it's for you..I've had it for so long I just...it keeps withering," Roman's worry doesn't seem to cease "I feel like I'm missing something," Patton replies to the look, before his face softens "Plants have a language that I don't understand," He mutters upon realization "What does the cactus mean?"

"Endurance, struggling, that someone is going through a hard time," The words roll off his tongue so easily, Patton has to wonder if he's born with this knowledge or if it's simply something he's studied extremely hard. And then he almost laughs because all this time he's been carrying this cactus and not realizing it's the epitome of who he is as a person. "Are you?"

"A little,"

"How did you get that bruise?" The man looks almost defeated, he feels so small against this man as he stares at the ground and wishes for it to swallow him up. Not only do lies feel so hard to make now, but he can most certainly doesn't _want_ to lie to Roman. Roman can only ever give him the truth or some version of it, it would be an insult to lie to his face knowing this. "You don't want to tell me, do you?" Patton shakes his head "I assume because I have a temperament?" At least that they can agree on, so he nods in response. "Let's go have some tea, and then, you can tell me, and I will not be angry," 

They go to Emile's house, because they both know he's worried about Remy and will want to company, but then Emile starts to fret over the bruise on Patton's cheek. "Did Remy do that? I know he wouldn't do it on purpose, but you're back and he's not so something might have gone wrong and..."

"No," Patton utters, throat dry "He didn't, Remy wouldn't hurt me," Finally a truth that doesn't feel so heavy. "You know that you're just scared, he's okay, Virgil is with him," Patton looks and sounds exhausted, like a robot trying to talk as he sits down with a look on his face that is so vacant that it's almost not Patton there at all. Emile makes him a cup of tea and Patton rolls his sleeves up to peel the plasters off of his skin. The cuts have healed and he sighs with frustration "Did one of you do something to me?" Roman looks a little affronted "I keep healing faster than I am used to healing, as in a matter of hours," 

"I would never do something without your permission," Roman stated firmly "I could never, you know this," 

"I haven't done anything," Emile places the cup of tea down n front of him "You sound upset, isn't this a good thing?" Patton shakes his head, tears welling in his eyes, he doesn't know why he's crying, he very rarely has a reason to spontaneously burst into tears but here he is anyway, crying like a child over thin air. "What's wrong, love?" Patton simply bursts, burying his face in his hands as his shoulders heave with his breaths. 

"I don't know what's happening to me, there's something wrong!" He rubs his eyes "Maybe Virgil did it by accident? When he healed me last time maybe he's done something and what if something's wrong and..."

"It's okay, breathe, it's okay," Emile's hands press gently to his arms, a man who is used to calming hysterical young men that wander into his house mildly injured, and a kind look in his eyes that genuinely makes Patton feel safe as he looks up into them. "Why don't you let me take a look, see if I can find anything?" He helps Patton stand and leads him over to the bed to let him lie down, Roman sits like an obedient puppy by the side of the bed and rests his head next to his partner's hand. "Are you okay with needles?" Patton nods as Emile rummages through his drawer and brings out a wrapped up packet. "All healing magic goes straight to the blood, generally the purpose is to rapidly use up white blood cells for faster healing, so if there's magic still left and it's Witch magic, it will be in your blood, Fae magic works a little differently but a Faery can't place any sort of protection on you without your permission and your name," he wraps a strap around Patton's arm, and the needle is in and out expertly within seconds "All right that should be enough, you just rest for now," 

Emile is happy to have something that keeps him busy, as he sets about opening and closing cupboards looking for the things he needs for his spell. In the meantime, Roman nuzzles against Patton's arm by way of asking for permission, and the younger holds out his arms like a scared child as the Faery crawls into them. "It's okay, my prince, you will be okay,"

"I know you know my name you know, you can use it,"

"I don't trust myself to do so," Roman sighs "Sometimes we cannot be helped, magic is a powerful unknown entity, even I cannot completely control something like that, I don't want to be in the habit of using your name, if we have an argument or I'm angry I could accidentally put more power behind it than I intend too," He lays his head on his partner's shoulder "With Virgil it's different, he's a Witch, his own magic can counter my own, and Witches have many names, not just the one they chose, in that respect I suppose we're not that so unalike," 

"Witches have more than one name?" Roman hums absently. 

"They're given a name at birth and then they chose one at around seven years old," He looks like he's about to say more until the door opens, he sits up as he recognizes Virgil, worry in his eyes, until he sees Remy's body in his arms and looks more panicked. "Is he okay?" Virgil nods tiredly. 

"He knocked himself out when he couldn't control the fire," He lies him down next to Patton, the human notes that the other's cat ears are twitching in his sleep as Remy automatically curls up next to him like it's a reflex to do this as he sleeps. Patton is almost sure he can hear him purring. "He really is like a cat," Virgil comments as the other stares. Emile hands Virgil a cup of tea, sparing Remy a worried glance and a disheartened sigh before he returns to what he was doing. "I'm sorry if he scared you, Patton, you looked as white as a ghost,"

"That's just my skin," Patton jokes lightly "He doesn't scare me, I know he'd never intentionally hurt me," He mutters "Even unintentionally he'd try his hardest and that's all I could ask for really," He sighs and sits up "I knew that there would be some danger being here, it was accounted for," Roman nuzzles lightly against his shoulder as Virgil gives a small nod, not wanting to press the issue further, pulling up a chair to rest his head on Roman's shoulder. 

"That bruise you had seems to have almost healed," Roman mutters softly "If you're healing quicker than usual, I have to admit I would hate to have seen how it first looked, so...are you going to tell me now, who did this to you?" There's a thick silence where all eyes (bar the sleeping Remy) seemed to be on him, even Emile looks up in interest from where he is stirring something in a pot. 

"My father," Patton says truthfully, that weight returning "It's not the first time so I doubt it will be the last, but I didn't want to tell you after..." Virgil sighs a little, trust their own temper to push Patton away from them, he needed comfort, not revenge, and they should've noticed this. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but it doesn't really hurt so much, I'm used to it now," Emile makes some form of noise that could be shock, abuse isn't unheard of, but Witches tend to have more respect for each other than mindless punching, plus with them all being so powerful they can't quite afford to get into genuine fights. Humans lose their temper and someone gets a bruise, Virgil loses his temper and an entire village could go under.

"I'm sorry that we made you feel you couldn't talk to us, Patton," Virgil says gently, he looks almost as exhausted as Patton feels, but his exhaustion comes from a place of love whilst Patton comes from a place of sheer agony, emotionally that is, physically he's not sure he can currently feel a thing. Actually, emotionally he's not sure he's quite feeling anything either, just...tired. He's so tired. "We should let you rest, you look like you're about to pass out," Roman makes an indignant noise, his arms wrapping protectively around Patton as if he feared he may disappear. "Roman, come on, he needs rest, you can be overly protective later," The Faery huffs but let's go, Patton even dares to smile a little before he lies back down, in moments he's passing out.


	3. divine

_"Her eyes and words are so icy_   
_Oh but she burns_   
_Like rum on a fire,"_

-Hozier, Cherry Wine

* * *

When Patton wakes up, Remy has already awoken. He knows this because there's a small black cat sat on his chest peering up at him with his tail flicking a little in the background. "I asked him to move, but he refuses," Emile calls "The results are in by the way," Patton runs a hand through the fur of the cat, picking him up as he sits up, and placing Remy on his lap to give him the attention he seems to be craving. "I couldn't find any Witch magic in there, so whatever's happening to you, it's not our doing," He sighs a little "But I'll keep running a few more tests to see if there's anything else going on," Patton nods as Remy leaps off his lap and onto the floor, before shifting back to his human self. 

"Sorry about earlier," He mutters, running a hand through his hair. Patton waves a dismissive hand "Did you tell Virgil and Roman" He nods and sighs deeply, reaching up to stretch his back after his sleep "You don't think you should have? You know they wouldn't go against your wishes and do something right? If you've told them not to do something they won't do it, no matter how much they might want too, it's against their rules or whatever, well it's against Roman's rules technically," He grins, and it reminds Patton of the Cheshire Cat. "I don't really have so many rules," Remy sits next to him and rests his head on Patton's shoulder with a sigh that sounds as deep as a single breath can reach. 

"I didn't really assume you did, but I would appreciate it if you keep away from my father," There's still a drain in his emotions, but his tone is pleading enough for Remy to know that revenge is not what Patton wants. He nods languidly, looking as tired as Patton feels, before sitting up. "Thank you," Emile hands them both a cup of coffee and leans against the table with a thoughtful expression. He doesn't really know what to make of everything, and usually, he loves a good puzzle, but this puzzle is a matter of someone's life so he'd prefer to solve it sooner rather than later. There's a Human, who is healing at rapid paces, which could indirectly prevent him from dying in the long term, who has been attacked twice now for seemingly no reason other than people tend to ostracise him. This could be due to his sexuality, as Humans tend to make mountains out of molehills when it comes to these things, or it could be something else. 

He can't find any magic in him which means that Virgil didn't do anything and the only Faery that he's met thus far is Roman, and Roman wouldn't do anything to Patton without his permission. So far things are not making very much sense to Emile, or to anyone for that matter, and in the meantime, they have a really rather frightened Patton who looks like he's about to pass out again from emotional exhaustion. He's about to suggest the two go back to sleep when there's a knock at the door, Virgil pokes his head around the side looking a little perturbed. "We have...an issue,"

"Another one?" Emile muttered.

"Yeah, another one," At least he's not the only one that's getting a little tired with the series of predicaments that seem to be enjoying cropping up. Nevertheless, he puts on a smile and slides on his shoes before heading outside after Virgil. He looks back towards his house to see Remy and Patton leaning nosily out of the window a mere few seconds after leaving, Emile rolls his eyes affectionately, something of a real smile prickling at his lips. 

An issue would be one way to put this. Roman stood at the front of a small crowd of Witches that were muttering something along the lines of "Half-breed," Emile's skin prickles a little, wondering who or what the discussion could be about. He pushes through the crowd to see a boy, around Patton's age, sat on the ground and looking really rather injured. Roman was trying his best to help, but he's not quite good at the intricacies of healing other people, his own body heals itself and generally, everyone here has Emile for healing magic. "I should open up a hospital," He muttered, kneeling beside the boy, who had been attacked by something...judging by the burns, a form of an allergic reaction, a very specific allergic reaction. This boy must be Fae. 

It's not rare that Faeries walk in and out of their village after all Roman practically lives here three out of the four seasons, so the crowd and worried muttering doesn't make much sense. Usually, someone just comes to get Emile if there's an injured person or animal. Half-breed? That's usually a derogatory term for half-witches, but this person is Fae, and Fae can't breed with Humans so that must mean..._is that even possible?_ Half-Witch and Half-Fae? "It'll be harder to treat you if you don't lower your glamour," Emile mutters gently "Come, I'll try and heal you," Roman helps him steady the boy to his feet, Emile shoots Virgil a look, and the elder nods and works on dispersing the crowd. 

Once they get him inside, the boy all but collapses onto the bed, hissing in pain, tears of agony in his eyes "Someone did this intentionally to him," Emile utters angrily "Stupid people and their stupid violence," They can all tell he's starting to reach his limit with stupidity today. The boy, in too much pain to use any more magic, finally lowers his glamour and Roman inhales sharply. 

Patton stares a little, a soft 'oh' on his lips as he watches the change. He'd seen it before of course, but he'd never seen someone go from looking Human to being a Witch for the first time. Or...not a Witch. His skin is deathly pale, cobalt eyes pleading as Emile flitters around through his books. His dark curls look even darker against the white of the pillow he's lying on. Teeth sharp and pointed ears, like Roman's, with soft blue wings that look injured, that's the Fae half at least; the Witch half is something different; fish scales trail over the backs of his hands and disappear under his shirt, in colors from blue to purple to gold, and then re-appear on the left side of his neck, just reach his jawline. 

_Holy shit, he's beautiful._

Patton kneels beside him, and he flinches a little "It's okay, you're safe here, Emile will look after you," He takes one his hands gently and squeezes it softly "I promise, no one here will ever hurt you," Remy helps Emile, noticing his friend is rather stressed as he searches for something that can help with this. It's not every day a dying half-Witch comes wandering in, he's never tried to perform any sort of healing spell on someone like him. "Do you have a name?" The boy looks over at Roman, then shakes his head. Roman tries not to look affronted. Patton doesn't blame him, judging by the reactions, this boy is not exactly well-liked by neither Fae nor Witches. "How about age?"

"20," He whispers finally, after a pause to decipher whether it's a trick. 

"I can heal your wings," Roman muttered, "That is about as much as I can do, I'm sorry, I'm no healer, but if I may...?" The stranger nods tiredly. "Try to stay conscious little one," The Faery says gently "Emile never fails us, he's just trying to figure out which part to heal first, being mixed, the magic used will have to be different, you have two different biologies," He places his hands over the wings as a soft red light seems to almost weave itself against the fabric of the wings. "You're not a season Fae, are you? Neither Seelie nor Unseelie, I have to say, you're a long way from home, it's been many centuries since I last saw a sea Faery," The boy gives something of a smile at the small talk "I won't ask too many questions, you must save your energy, but I'll keep talking so you have something to listen to, my bedside manner is impeccable," 

"Bullshit," Remy mutters as he places a book next to him. "Once you left me stranded in a tree for half an hour because you thought it was funny," Emile comes over with an assortment of things. "This may take a while, I'm not going to lie, but the good news is once we've figured it out if you get injured we can heal you a lot faster next time,"

"The assumption there will be a next time is not comforting," The boy mutters dryly. Roman grins a little, as Patton steps back to stop everything being so crowded. As Emile gets to work, the boy's eyes meet his own, he can see the questions in them. He doesn't look very Witch or Fae so he supposes it's a natural reaction to wonder what a Human is doing in a Witches' coven. Questions can come later, however, as he starts to wince in further pain, the magic taking its course. 


End file.
